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THE CANADIAN HORTICULTURIST. 



THE MICHIGAN HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



We clip the following interesting 

 selection from the full report of the 

 December meeting of that society, in 

 the Grand Rapids Daily Democrat. 



THE SOCIETY. 



Seventeen years ago was organised 

 in this city the 'Michigan State Horti- 

 cultural society, an association which 

 has grown to be one of the most vigor- 

 ous and useful of all the societies of the 

 State devoted to advancement of special 

 interests. It has come to be one of 

 the most important of its kind in the 

 country, and its annual volumes are 

 recognized as pomological authority 

 everywhere, and the good it has done 

 in promoting fruit growing in Michi- 

 gan is incalculable. 



The early years of the society were 

 days of small things. It kept the 

 character of a local society for some 

 time, but when T. T. Lyon, of South 

 Haven, became president, in 1875, and 

 was joined by C. W. Garfield, of Grand 

 Rapids, as secretary, the following 

 year, the society took on new energy 

 and a new character. To Mr. Lyon 

 the welfare of the society has been a 

 first love, and he has given it a vast 

 amount of unselfish and unrequited 

 labor. He has been intelligently and 

 industriously aided by Mr. Garfield, 

 whose enthusiasm and genius in hard 

 work have been most fortunately com- 

 bined with the efforts of the venerable 

 president. These two have been re- 

 chosen year by year, and doubtless will 

 be as long as they are willing to accept 

 a modicum of honour with an excess of 

 responsibility and labor. 



HIGH CULTURE. 



The following very valuable paper by 

 Secretary P. C. Reynolds, of New York, 

 Avas read by Secretary Garfield^under 

 the head of "Intensive methods in hor- 

 ticulture :" 



Very general complaint has come J 

 fi'om nearly all sections of the country ^ 

 where small fruits are produced for 

 markets that prices the past season 

 were unremunerative. Such being the 

 case, one of two alternatives seems to 

 be indicated, namely : the reduction of 

 volume of products or the diminution 

 of its cost. It is a very difficult matter 

 for fruit growers, scattered as they are 

 over a wide area, to combine to reduce 

 production. The orderly operation of 

 the laws of trade and production have 

 a tendency to diminish ])roduction when 

 excessi^^e, but combination rarely does. 

 The jjrices of small fruits are destined, 

 I believe, to rule low in the future, and 

 growers will be wise to adapt their 

 business to that condition of things. 

 With unlimited land and labor for pro- 

 duction, the amount produced will be 

 likely to increase quite as fast as popu- 

 lation. The proper way to cheapen 

 production, in my opinion, is by pro- 

 ducing more per acre. Every grower 

 can do this for himself without the 

 necessity of combination or co-opera- 

 tion. 



Small-fruit growing used to be con- 

 sidered a branch of horticulture. Re- 

 cently many have conducted it as if it 

 belonged to agriculture. The result is 

 not surprising. The horticulturist to 

 grow lai-ge quantities of produce on 

 small areas of land by means of heavy 

 manuring and high culture ; the agri- 

 culturist spreads his operations over 

 broad ai'eas of soil, which he cultivates 

 enough to enable the roots of crops to 

 spi'ead through the soil, without serious 

 obstruction, in search of adequate sup- 

 ])lies of suitable food, and to i)ievent 

 weeds from obtaining such growth as to 

 overcome the plants he is seeking to 

 grow. The horticulturist seeks a small 

 tract of garden soil, near a town or 

 city, where he can have an abundance 

 of fertilizers, laborers of the right kind, 

 and where proximity to market enables 



